1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates to a method for distributing address tables respectively covering all subscriber equipment addresses of a respective ring-shaped network to all subscriber equipment in the respective ring-shaped network as well as to "n" further ring-shaped networks, whereby each ring-shaped network is equipped with a subscriber equipment that monitors the respective ring-shaped network, a current address table being prepared in the subscriber equipment after each configuring in the respective ring-shaped network to be monitored and each ring-shaped network being connected to a further ring-shaped network via at least one switching matrix device serving for physical and procedural adaptation of two ring-shaped networks, and each subscriber equipment being equipped with an access controller serving the purpose of the respective network access and with further control devices that control internal procedures of the subscriber equipment with which information having a packet format are formed, transmitted via ring-shaped networks and the received information being further processed therewith dependent on informational content.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In order to be able to carry out a designational transmission of messages within "n" ring-shaped networks, an address table that respectively covers all subscriber equipment involved in the ring-shaped network must be present in each of the subscriber equipment involved in the ring-shaped network. Methods for forming such address tables are known wherein the addresses of the subscriber equipment are interrogated after each configuring in a ring-shaped network and are collected in one subscriber equipment. The control of this method or, respectively, the interrogating, collecting and, subsequently, the editing of the individual addresses to form a current address table is usually assumed by that subscriber equipment that monitors the respective ring-shaped network. Both in this method, as well as in all other methods serving for the message transmission, for network control and network monitoring, messages as well as network control and monitoring information are thereby formed, preferably in packets, are transmitted and are further processed dependent on informational content. The exchange-oriented access of the individual subscriber equipment to the respective ring-shaped network predominantly occurs with what are referred to as the "token access method". In this connection one may take reference to the ANSI/IEEE Standard 802.5. Those methods and procedures with which a subscriber equipment accesses a ring-shaped network are controlled by control equipment that are respectively arranged in the access devices.
Furthermore, ring-shaped networks are being linked to one another to an increasing degree, i.e. the subscriber equipment of the respective ring-shaped networks can also designationally transmit messages to subscriber equipment of other ring-shaped networks. The linking of the ring-shaped networks is usually assumed by a switching matrix device that carries out both the procedural and the physical adaptation of the ring-shaped networks to be linked. Such a switching matrix is inserted either between two subscriber equipment or between the access devices serving for the respective network accessing in one subscriber equipment connected to two or more ring-shaped networks. In order to then enable a designational conversation between all subscriber equipment of all linked, ring-shaped networks, all subscriber equipment addresses must be known in each subscriber equipment. Proceeding on the basis of the existence of an address table in the subscriber equipment monitoring one ring-shaped network, methods are known by means of which the address table is distributed to the subscriber equipment of the appertaining ring-shaped network at the initiative of the monitoring subscriber equipment during the setup of a ring-shaped network. The address tables of the respective other, linked ring-shaped networks can be available at each subscriber equipment in printed form. The desired designation address can be identified with the assistance of the print-out subscriber listing, before a conversation with a subscriber equipment that is not arranged in a subscriber equipment's own ring-shaped network and can be manually input via an appropriate input device at the subscriber equipment. a guarantee that the respective designation (ring-shaped network or subscriber equipment) is operational can thereby not be established.